From LifeSiteNews

By Anthony Murdoch

Most Canadians fear the nation’s euthanasia regime unfairly targets those who are financially and socially vulnerable

A senior aged Canadian couple has said that a hospice care center presented euthanasia to one of them as an option as they were facing increased care costs they could not afford on their fixed income.

71-year-old Fred Sandeski from Saskatchewan, who suffers from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) along with a host of other ailments such as diabetes and epilepsy, and his wife Teresa, who also has failing health, say death via Canada’s Medical Assistance in Dying euthanasia program was suggested to them when they realized they would not be able to cover the costs associated with increased care at a hospice center.

According to the Epoch Times, when Fred started with palliative care, “they were just listing us the availability of what options they had for us,” and MAiD was presented as “one option.”

Thankfully, Sandeski refused MAiD, saying, “I really, really believe that the Lord has put me on this earth for a reason, and he’s not going to let me go until I’m done.” 

Sandeski’s plight was brought to the attention of the provincial government of Saskatchewan by the opposition New Democratic Party’s shadow minister for seniors, Keith Jorgenson, who encouraged Saskatchewan Health Minister Jeremy Cockrill to help the couple.

In response, Cockrill said that he had reached out to the Sandeskis and would “find a solution that’s going to work for Fred and Theresa this week.” 

He added that when it comes to the care home having offered them MAiD as a solution to their plight, he would “hope that any health care professional in this province, having those discussions with a patient has a strong understanding of the patient’s health and familial context.” 

Instances of people being offered MAiD as a solution to their health issues have become commonplace in Canada, as reported by LifeSiteNews.  

Indeed, most Canadians fear the nation’s euthanasia regime unfairly targets those who are financially and socially vulnerable while still supporting the immoral practice in general.   

However, some provincial governments are looking at fighting back against Trudeau’s expansion of legal assisted suicide.  

Recently, the United Conservative government of Alberta said it would push back against the Canadian federal government’s continued desire to expand euthanasia in the nation, announcing it will be launching a review of the legislation and policies surrounding the grim practice, which will include a period of public engagement.  

Under Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, whose government legalized MAiD in 2016, the deadly program has continued to relax who is eligible for death.

In 2021, the program expanded from killing only terminally ill patients to allowing the chronically ill to qualify, as since then the government has sought to include those suffering solely from mental illness.

The number of Canadians killed by lethal injection under the nation’s MAiD program since 2016 stands at close to 65,000, with an estimated 16,000 deaths in 2023 alone. Many fear that because the official statistics are manipulated the number may be even higher.   

Canada had approximately 15,280 euthanasia deaths in 2023. 

From LifeSiteNews

By Alex Schadenberg of Euthanasia Prevention Coalition

In 2023, Canada recorded over 15,300 euthanasia deaths, with disabilities, poverty, and loneliness driving decisions. Assisted suicide represented 4.7 percent of all deaths in Canada last year.

On February 6, 2024, after obtaining the euthanasia data from Alberta, Ontario, and Québec, the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition published an article stating that there were approximately 15,300 euthanasia (MAiD) deaths in Canada in 2023.

On July 8, 2024 we published an article with links to the euthanasia data from Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Ontario, and Québec. We again predicted that there were about 15,300 euthanasia deaths in 2023.

READ: Canadian seniors say they were offered euthanasia when faced with increased hospice costs

On December 11, 2024, Canada’s Ministry of Health released the Fifth Annual Report on Medical Assistance in Dying which indicates that there were 15,343 reported euthanasia deaths representing 4.7 percent of all deaths in 2023.

Why did Canada’s Ministry of Health wait until December 2024 to release the 2023 euthanasia data when the report essentially concerns numbers and data while lacking information on the actual reason for people wanting to be killed by euthanasia?

Interesting data in the report:

• Of the 15,343 reported euthanasia deaths: 95.9 percent were Track 1 deaths (the person was deemed to have a terminal condition); 4.1 percent were Track 2 deaths (the person was deemed as not having a terminal condition).
• People with disabilities accounted for 33.5 percent of the Track 1 euthanasia deaths and 58.3 percent of the Track 2 euthanasia deaths. In 2022, 27 percent of Canadians were people with one or more disabilities. People with disabilities are over-represented in Canada’s euthanasia statistics.
• 95.8 percent of those who died by euthanasia were Caucasian (White) while fewer than 1 percent were First Nations people. In 2022, 69.8 percent of Canadians euthanized were Caucasian and 5 percent were First Nations people.

What is happening in British Columbia, Ontario and Québec?

When analyzing the Fifth Annual Report we question, “What makes British Columbia, Ontario and Québec different than the rest of Canada?” In 2023, euthanasia deaths increased by 36.5 percent in Québec, 30.3 percent in Ontario, and 18 percent in British Columbia. When examining the data from the other seven provinces, the next highest rate of increase was Alberta with a 6.4 percent increase in euthanasia deaths.

Québec has the highest euthanasia rate with 5601 reported euthanasia deaths – this represents 7.3 percent of all deaths and 36.5 percent of all Canadian euthanasia deaths. Canada’s 2021 Census indicated that 23 percent of Canadians live in Québec.

We question the accuracy of the Québec euthanasia data. CBC Radio Canada reported on March 9, 2024, that the Québec government had reported that there were 5,686 reported euthanasia deaths in 2023, but the Fifth Annual report states 5,601.

The analysis of the Québec Commission on End-of-Life Care Eighth Annual Report (April 1, 2022 – March 30, 2023) by Amy Hasbrouck indicated that there were 190 euthanasia deaths that may not have been reported by the doctor or nurse practitioner who carried out the death. 190 unreported euthanasia deaths is serious.

Euthanasia for frailty was listed as a reason in 1,392 deaths, representing more than 9 percent of all euthanasia deaths. In 92 euthanasia deaths, frailty was listed as the only reason.

Euthanasia for chronic pain was listed as a reason in 933 deaths, with 23 of the deaths listing chronic pain as the only reason.

Euthanasia for dementia was listed as a reason in 241 deaths, with 106 of those deaths listing dementia as the only reason.

Similar to other jurisdictions, the reason for seeking euthanasia was highly oriented to the person’s social condition.

• 96 percent listed “Loss of ability to engage in meaningful activities,”
• 87 percent listed “Loss of ability to perform activities of daily living,”
• 70 percent listed “Loss of dignity,”
• 55 percent listed “Inadequate pain control.”

It is important to note that loneliness and isolation was listed in more than 21 percent of all euthanasia deaths representing more than 3,200 people.

People with disabilities should be concerned that more than 50 percent of those who died identified “loss of independence” and almost 50 percent listed being a perceived burden on family, friends, or care givers.

People with disabilities should also be concerned that “other conditions” was the highest identified factor for euthanasia. For people with disabilities, 46.2 percent of the Track 1 deaths were based on “other conditions” and 62.9 percent of the Track 2 deaths were based on “other conditions.” “Other conditions” is not further defined and indicates a serious concern with discrimination of people with disabilities.

We recognize another concern related to the difference in income levels for Track 1 and Track 2 euthanasia deaths. People who died by Track 2 euthanasia were more likely to have a lower income than the Track 1 deaths.

More analysis of the Fifth Annual Report needs to be done. The report includes more information than previous years’ reports but it does not examine why people are asking for euthanasia nor does it uncover deaths that may be outside of the parameters of the law.

In October 2024 the chief coroner of Ontario released a report from the Ontario MAiD Death Review Committee reporting that between 2018 and 2023 there were euthanasia deaths driven by homelessness, fear, and isolation and that poor people are at risk of coercion, indicating that Canadians with disabilities are needlessly dying by euthanasia. The data from the Ontario Death Review report indicates that in the reported time period there were at least 428 non-compliant euthanasia deaths and 25 percent of the euthanasia providers violated the law.

The Ontario MAiD Death Review report has three parts (Part 3) (Part 2) (Part 1).

The federal government needs to do a complete review of Canada’s experience with euthanasia.

Reprinted with permission from the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition.